Leviticus 13:1-59


God cares about the health of His people and gave clear instructions as to how those who were suspected of having leprosy should proceed.  Unfortunately, disease is a reality in this world that is cursed by sin and its consequences.  All disease is a result of sin in general, but should not be considered as a result of personal sin.  Certainly God can afflict a person with disease or even death as a result of personal sin; but it must not be assumed that all disease is some sort of punishment for the sin of a person afflicted.  However, whether the leprosy was the result of personal sin or not, it still caused the person to be considered unclean and he was required to live alone away from the rest of the congregation in order to prevent the spread of the disease to others.  This would certainly have been a devastating problem for both the person and his family, but was considered as necessary for the greater good of the entire nation.  There are times when individuals must make sacrifices of personal freedom, pleasures and even their basic rights in order to protect the well being of a larger group of people.

LEPROSY WAS TO BE CAREFULLY DIAGNOSED: Since it was possible to confuse leprosy and any other number of skin problems or sores, the people presented themselves to the priest who made the ultimate determination of the severity of the problem.  Anything that was suspicious was reason to isolate the person until the reality of the problem could be known.  This was done in order to prevent the spread of the disease other members of the family or congregation.  Infectious diseases could have wiped out many of the people in the group so they took any measures possible to prevent the spread of this disease.  Fortunately, in most cases today we are able to prevent the spread of diseases without the need for isolation, but that was not the reality at this time of history.  God cared deeply about the nation as a whole and wanted to care for them in every way possible.  It is a comfort to know that God cares for us.

LEPROSY WAS TO BE DESTROYED IN CLOTHING: Since leprosy could be transmitted through secretions in clothing, any object of clothing that had been infected was to be burned.  Clothes were one of the greatest possessions of a person, so this could have signified and tremendous sacrifice on the part of the person.  However, health is always more important than wealth.  This is a good principle to remember.  Many times we sacrifice our health in order to achieve wealth.  We become so busy with work that we do not have time to eat correctly or exercise and we end up getting sick because of all the pressures and stresses associated with the pace of our lifestyles.  It is vital that we keep a proper priority in these matters. 

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